The Return Part I

When he stepped down from the bus, he could barely felt the ground. The wet, cold weather didn't help either; instead they made it worst for him. He walked a few steps, paused, took another few steps before came to a complete halt. He sighed heavily and slowly dragging his face upward to look directly in front of him. He clenched his suitcase tighter. There were no sounds of living things, humans or animals. Not even a bird chirping. Damp and soil-like stech seemed to surround the house in front of him. No, it was more like the house was sweating ferociously, steaming out the unpleasent smell from its each and every pore. The feeling of dread and sorrow lingered around the lawn. He was home.

Numb. Empty. Nothingness. That are the only feelings that he had now. Or is it the contrary? He has no feeling right now, either physically or emotionally. It didn't seemed right to him. So he mustered all the bad memory he had in this house, all the horrible and sad moments he experienced in this house especially when he was still a kid. The midnight arguement between his parents; the silent yet intense secret arguement, the mumbled crying; not of his mom but of his dad, the constant effort in making him the best that he can be; or more than he can be or do, the occasional fight with his brother; which always left them feeling completly stupid, sad and painful. He tried to remember all the accidents that happened to him when he was living there because there was never violence from his parent. Not physical violance that is. The falling from the kitchen cabinet when he was small, the slipping in the bathroom every now and then, he tried to remember every bruise and every cut, every bone broken, every sprain, every burnt and every fear. Nothing. There was nothing that could made him feel something. Not a tear, not even a twicth in his heart. He was numbed, from his head to his soul.

Well, then. There's no point of just standing there. May be when he was literally in the house then all the feeling will come back to him, good or bad. He only took a step when suddenly he felt the world was swirling around him slowly. It was like he was looking the world outside his body and he was rotating around it (his body). He could see the view 360 degree without moving his head. The sensation was to much he had to be on his knee. Then, the light started to blinking. It was as if the sun was not really the sun anymore, but a broken spotlight. Or like a table light that was played by a kid that keep turning it off and on. The swirling became faster and suddenly he could also felt or sensed that the ground under him started to rotate also. The disorientation feeling was amplified. The earth is always moving but because of gravity, we didn't notice it. What happened to him now is that the law of gravity was still applied to his body, but not to his sense. He could throw up any moment now.

The frequency of the sun dissapeared was also increased. But when it was dark, it wasn't the normal darkness. It should be the same surrounding but in darkness and his eyes should already adjusted to the dark. But when it became dark it was totally dark. There was nothing to see. It was as if he was in another place, a place out of this world. Another dimension perhaps. Then, slowly he realized when the dark moments came, there were a lot of eyes start to appear in the dark. There were small in size, number and distance at first. And they surroundded him. And then they came closer, the number dwelling, the size became larger although not gigantic. First there was like a group of sharp sound of ruffled leaves. Then it became one inhuman growl. It was one of the worst sound in his life, worst than any demonic sound imitated by movies or games he ever heard. It took a little while for him to realize that the growl has gradually became a complete comprehensive words. He was expecting something like "I am your master. Bow to me" or "There's no way to run, no place to hide. Let us eat you alive and chew on your bone".
Instead, the words were
"Here's your 50 cent and don't forget-" then the voice changed to a normal human voice "your change again".

It was a voice of a man. A smilling man. Suddenly, he was in front of his house again, standing, his suitcase in his hand. There was no darkness, no foul creatures and everything seemed normal. It was as if it never even happen. He was dillussional.

But the man in front of him is real. He could felt it. He could sense everything now is real, it was a different feeling from what he had experienced before. The man in front of him was the bus conductor. And the bus conductor was giving him a 50 cent coin. Before he could take it and before he could wonder where was the bus, the conductor hand that was giving him the coin changed. No, not just changed but burst into something else. Something not human. It was still a hand, but not a human hand. The skin was like a snake skin, but looked harder. The fingers became claw, razor sharp claw. The man himself changed (burst). His body became bigger, tearing his (its?) clothes. The skin became the same as the hand, and there was no hair on it. Not even one. Its face still resemble a man, but a very ugly man. While the skin texture was the same as the other part of its body, the eyes grew larger and were yellowish. Its pupils were red as if it were bleeding. The face also shrunk until there was no flesh beneath the skin, only bone. Then the worst part. Its mouth. The teeth has turned into 2 rows of long sharp fangs. It was greasily yellow. Mucus-like saliva dripping from the teeth. Then, the tounge. It was almost like a human toungue but longer and was sharp pointed.

Before he could grasp what was happening in front of him, the creature right arm suddenly extended. It was happening too fast that he didn't even realized the claw went through him, didn't stop and still extending until it was burried in the tree across the street, the neighbour's tree. If it wasn't for the blood, he could see the situation as rather comical because it was like he was stabbed by an evil version of Plastic Man (or Mr. Fantastic). He could even imagine the front page of tomorrow newspaper:

A MAN KILLED BY PLASTIC MAN

A tragic comedy. Then pain engulfed him and more blood coming out of his wound and out of his mouth. And then, as if it was made from rubber, the flexible hand shrunk, not in size but in length. Because the claw still burried in the tree's trunk, the process brought him via the creature body to the tree. he didn't notice whether he was dragged on the ground or on the air. Whatever it was, it was fast. Now, he was slumping under the tree, the creature's hand still burried in his body. The creature was crouching in front of him. Then, the creature bend near his face and said,

"If only I can kill you right now..."
"But they said I can't because you are too important. Well, at least I have the pleasure of your pain..."

The creature started to twist its hand and sent a ripple of unbearable agony through his body. He wanted to scream but he only managed to utter a loud gasp. More blood coming out of his wound. In that crucial moment what he can think of was only "Great, now you ruined my nice t-shirt".

The creature was about to twist its arm again when suddenly it turned its head to his house as if it was sensing someone. Or something. Then, it hissed and suddenly dissapeared like a smoke. It was like he was never there. Blinded by the intense pain, he barely notice a figure was coming toward him from his house. It was when the figure crouching beside him that he realize that it was his own father. He could only panted, "H-hhelpp m-mmmee..."

Instead of panic and acting nervously, his father just smiled and look at him softly, calmly. Then his father said, "I thought we could keep you out of this forever. I thought we could live normally. But I was wrong. "

And then, his father put his left hand on his wound. Like a good special effect, a bright blue light surround his father arm and then went through his wound. First the pain dissapeared, and then the wound closed by itself. Even the blood dried. But the light or aura wasn't hot. It was warm and comforting. Like his mother touch. But his father wasn't finish. The physical wound was only the small part. The aura energy from his father hand increased and it flow through his body to get rid of something the creature left in his body. It was the opposite aura that of his father, a dark aura. It left a dark, dreadful feeling not only in his body but also in his soul. When the dreadful aura was completely gone, his father pulled his hand from him. The bright blue aura rapidly fading from his father arm like gun smoke. His father put his hand on his shoulder and said, "I need to tell you something..."